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Kickstarter project of the week: Olmose turns your old smartphones into a home security system

There’s a reason everybody and their mom is throwing all their money at Kickstarter projects. The place is teeming with innovation and creative ideas, but it’s definitely a hit or miss venture. While some Kickstarter campaigns are awesome, some definitely leave us scratching our heads.

The ‘Kickstarter project of the week’ series is an attempt to put together a curated selection of our favorite tech funding campaigns. Today we are taking a look at a Kickstarter project that will keep your home safe, protect your vehicle and re-purpose old technology.

How many of you have old smartphones laying around the house? These are often in perfect working condition, and we all know how annoying it is to try to sell them at worthy prices. Why not just keep them and turn them into a versatile and affordable security system?

Remember, these are pretty much portable computers, with all the tools to become self-sustained systems. Olmose is trying to harness this idea and turn it into the security solution for everyone. It offers a full-fledged experience without the expenses of a dedicated kit.

So, what is Olmose all about? There is the Dog Station (dock), which has infrered sensors and charging capabilities, but that is not what Olmose revolves around. The company is selling you the service, really.

The whole thing consists of two apps. Olmose Guardian turns any phone into a dedicated security camera, while Olmose Remote allows the user to monitor Guardian devices.

It’s a simple, yet effective concept. Using the Olmose Remote app, you can monitor any Guardian device in your home. It supports both video and audio surveillance, and you can activate or deactivate surveillance mode at your will.

When activated, Olmose will send a notification when any suspicious activity takes place. This does include night-time events, as the Dog Station has an integrated infrared sensors. To make matters more interesting, you can even leave a Guardian-equipped phone in your car and track it in real time.

But if this is not about the product, how is Olmose making money? As mentioned above, they pretty much sell you the service. Here are the prices:

You do get a discount and special treats if you back the Kickstarter project, and you can sign up for as low as €20. Interested? Just hit the Kickstarter page and look more into it. I think this is a very resourceful way to reuse all those old gadgets. It sure beats piling up those landfills! I suppose it’s time to dig into my old boxes and find my old phones.

Edgar Cervantes has over 5 years of experience in tech journalism. Exploring the latest gadgets and constantly studying the industry are part of is daily drive. Regardless of what he is working on, you can be sure he is always trying his best to bring you the best content. He will be dead honest and will bend to nothing.